What up, SPN family? Here's a request from Tamilyn313! I hope you enjoy! Special thanks to Tamilyn313 for the idea and to Jenmm31 for the beta-ing!

A/N- in this story, Natalie is 8. Please see profile page for disclaimer.

"I've got it!"

Dean turned around to see what looked like a duffle bag on small legs walking towards him. He quickly pinched his lips together to hold in his laughter. After all, he knew how important it was for Natalie to think that she was helping, and if he laughed at her attempts, she'd be very insulted and upset. Not exactly how he wanted to leave things with his daughter before this solo case. "Thanks, squirt," he said, lifting the duffle out of her hands. "Nice job." He slung the bag behind him and reached down, ruffling her hair.

She giggled. "Dad!" she said, in a mock annoyed tone as she ducked away from his hand, flattening her hair back down. Dean's grin broke forth then, and with a chuckle, he turned back to the trunk, setting his bag in next to the duffle full of weaponry. He turned to see Natalie carefully examining the contents of the trunk just to make sure he had everything, and once again had to hold his laughter in check. Once she was satisfied, she looked up at him knowingly. He shook his head with a wry grin- he knew what was coming next. "Are you SURE I can't come?" she said in her best pleading tones. Dean drew in a breath and summoned his patience yet again.

"We've been over this, kid," he said, a slight warning in his voice. She didn't say anything to that. She knew better than to push him. Again.

A couple days ago, Dean had received a rather interesting phone call. Seems that there was some unfinished business on a case that he and Sam had worked a long time ago. They had taken care of the spirit at the time, but apparently the other victims of the original ghost had turned into restless spirits and were now haunting the town. This would normally be an easy case- however, the phone call had been from Cassie. Dean's ex. That spun a whole new level of complicated on this.

The night Cassie had called, after Natalie had finally been wrestled into bed, Sam and Dean quietly discussed their options. For some reason, Dean panicked at the idea of having a former girlfriend and his daughter in the same town. Didn't matter that Cassie would probably never see the kid, as Natalie usually stayed in the motel room while the boys were taking care of business. The whole idea was more than Dean could handle emotionally.

Not to mention…not for nothing but the last time Dean had rushed to Cassie's side, he ended up in her bed. The idea of that happening again was…welcome. Not that he was hard up or anything. Dean had done plenty well for himself in the one-night-stand department, even after Natalie had come along. But with Cassie- well, he couldn't put his finger on it, but it was just too much to have both of them in proximity to each other. Not to mention, the case itself was more than likely a simple salt and burn, nothing Dean couldn't handle on his own. So they had agreed that Sam and Natalie would stay here, just outside of Indianapolis where their last case had wrapped up, while Dean headed solo to Missouri.

Upon being told that she would be staying in Indy with Sam while Dean went off to take care of the ghosts, Natalie was less than pleased. It wasn't that she didn't love her uncle or want to spend time with him, far from it. But she always wanted to be in the center of the action, right where the monster was, even if she wasn't the one doing the fighting. She also had a certain amount of separation anxiety from Dean, dating back to her kindergarten days. She didn't like it when Dean wasn't near, simply because it brought back those feelings all over again. But no amount of begging, whining, or pleading had been able to budge her father a single inch.

Sam had been a mixture of apprehensive and excited about the whole thing. On the one hand, he knew that Natalie hated being away from Dean, so that was likely to put her in a bad mood. Not to mention, they all knew that Sam was the "pushover" of the Winchester parenting duo, and Natalie-in-a-bad-mood would do everything in her power to lovingly exploit that fact. Not having Dean nearby to keep her in line was a daunting task to Sam.

But Sam also knew that Natalie loved trying new things. Unlike her father, she and Sam could nerd out together on several points of her education. She even discovered that she liked some healthy foods under Sam's tutelage, much to Dean's chagrin. Sam had been looking at the options that the city held, and he was excited to try some of his own parenting ideas with his niece while she was solely in her care. Not that he thought Dean was doing a bad job- by all accounts, what his brother was pulling off was nothing short of a miracle. Sam just had some of his own ideas that he would have liked to try, and it seemed that this was his turn.

Dean had all but laughed in Sam's face when his little brother had told him of his plans. Sure, Natalie liked to explore and sow her eight-year-old oats, but Dean wasn't convinced that she was going to tolerate a whole week of Sam's super food-downward dog- namaste-infused bullshit. He gave Sam his blessing to try, though. Which reminded him- he needed to have a little talk with his daughter before he hit the road.

Once back in the motel room, Dean sat by the window and gestured to his daughter. "Hey, squirt, c'mere," he said. Natalie obeyed immediately, prancing over to him. He pulled her into his lap, knowing that the only reason she was tolerating the babyish behavior was because he was leaving. She snuggled into his chest, giving a tiny sigh. Dean rubbed her back as he spoke. "Listen up," he said. "You make sure you're good for Uncle Sam this week, got it?" At that, Natalie popped her head back up and grinned impishly at him.

"Dad, I'm ALWAYS good," she said charmingly, with a little head tilt. Dammit- she had gotten that charming smirk from him. She could disarm anyone with her smile. Oh well.

Dean got his bearings back and arched an eyebrow at her declaration. "Oh?" he asked casually as she smiled at him. "Just like you were good for Sam when he tried to put you to bed last night?"

Dean watched with detached humor as the grin slipped off his daughter's face, to be replaced by a look of horror and fear. "Yeah. Didn't think I heard about that one, did you?" Dean asked her dryly. He had been talking to Cassie last night at a bar far away from the motel room, leaving Sam to put Natalie to bed, which she had resisted wholeheartedly. Natalie's eyes darted nervously to her shoes, but Dean put a finger under her chin and brought her gaze back up to meet his. "Uncle Sam told me that you were trying every tactic in the book to get a later bedtime last night," Dean said evenly, watching her for her reaction.

Natalie bit her lip and squirmed a bit. She hadn't thought that Sam would tell on her. She really hadn't been THAT bad- she was just never tired when Sam tried to put her to bed. She knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that she wasn't supposed to fuss and argue with her uncle when he told her to do something, but she didn't think he'd rat her out for this. She gave a small shrug, trying to look innocent. "I wasn't tired," she mumbled, wishing with all her heart that Dean would let her look back down at the floor. No such luck. He leaned in closer.

"You're never tired," he countered softly, but in that tone that she knew meant trouble. "And you know damn well that when Uncle Sam tells you to go to bed, you're supposed to obey him. No monkey business."

"Yes, sir."

"So you wanna tell me why you tried to get away with it? Other than not thinking your uncle was gonna rat you out?" Natalie's shoulders slumped at that and she declined to answer, which told Dean that was EXACTLY why she tried it. Great. And he was about to leave her alone with the poor guy for a week. Fan-freaking-tastic. He needed to nip this in the bud, right now.

"Listen up, Natalie Grace," he said firmly, making sure he had her full attention. "You be on your best behavior for Sam this week. No funny business. I'm gonna call and check in every night to talk to the both of you. And if Sam tells me that you've been bad- at ALL, don't care what you did- you're gonna get it from me when I get back. You hear me?"

Natalie gulped nervously. "Yes, sir," she whispered, her eyes widening at Dean's threat. Dean took an extra second to stare into her eyes, reinforcing to her that he meant it. He was big on respecting your elders. He'd very rarely had to punish Natalie beyond the occasional Time Out or scolding, but they both understood that if she misbehaved for Sam while Dean was away, that would change.

Once he was satisfied that she got the message, he relaxed his face and leaned back. "Good," he said, pleased. "Now the flip side of that coin is that you're going to have to keep Sam in line, too." The tension of the previous moment broken by that statement, Natalie let out a cathartic giggle. Dean put on his playfully serious face. "I mean it. You're going to especially have to watch if he tries to talk to a girl, because we both know what that means."

"Disaster," Natalie said back, trying to imitate her father's 'serious' tone, but only succeeding in making herself giggle harder. Dean finally grinned at her, setting her heart back at ease. She leaned back into his chest, snuggling her cheek against the flannel. He put his arms around her, loving that she still occasionally let him hold her like this.

*SPN SPN SPN*

About five minutes later, after Sam had returned with their rental car, he watched as Natalie craned her neck, her nose and hands pressed up against the window, as Dean made the left turn onto the main road and drove out of sight. She stayed there for a while longer, then turned back towards the room with a sad sigh. But Sam was ready. He had a plan.

"Hey," he said in a light voice. "It's pretty nice outside. I was thinking maybe we could go to the pool. What do you think?"

The sad-faced girl suddenly lifted her head as if she'd been shocked with electricity. It was so rare that Sam and Dean actually had the time to take her to the pool, that she just usually wouldn't ask, even though it was one of her favorite past times.

"Does this place have a pool?" she asked carefully, not wanting to get her hopes up just yet.

Sam shook his head. "Not here at the motel. But this morning when I was coming back from the car rental place, I saw a really big community pool. Since it's a weekday, it's probably going to be empty this morning." He said it with a cool and casual tone, but really he was watching his niece to see how this was going over. She seemed to be struggling with something internally. He was curious to know what it was.

Natalie chewed on her lip, thinking. She knew Sam was trying to distract her from Dean's leaving, and he wouldn't purposefully dangle something in front of her only to snatch it back, but…call it a Winchester trait, she was still suspicious. Especially when he mentioned that it was a school day. "Don't we have to do school first?" she asked, the excitement in her voice betraying the casual look she was trying to adopt.

Sam just grinned. "I was thinking you've been working really hard recently. So it couldn't hurt to take a break and have some fun. I mean, if you're okay wi-" He didn't get to finish the sentence before Natalie screamed in delight and plowed into him, wrapping her arms around his waist and hugging him as hard as she could.

*SPN SPN SPN*

That night, Dean had called and gotten the good report on both of them. He himself was in Missouri, and was thinking it'd only be a couple days, which made Natalie happy enough to go to bed without a fight. Not to mention, Dean's threat was still hanging over her head, so it was easy to be on her best behavior. The next morning, instead of settling down with their schoolbooks, Sam once again had a surprise for his niece. They jumped into the rented Prius and took off downtown.

"C'mon, tell me where we're going! Just a little hint?" Natalie begged Sam. He couldn't help but grin at her antics.

"Nope."

"Uncle SAM. You're KILLING me."

"Really, Bug? Killing you."

"Why won't you tell me where we're going?"

"Because it wouldn't be a surprise then."

"If you tell me, I'll still act surprised."

"You got that from Lion King, didn't you?"

"Yes. And you should still tell me."

Just then, they pulled up to their destination. Sam arched his neck to make sure he had the correct address. Once Natalie saw that, she whipped around in her seat, anxious to see what it was. Her mouth dropped open in surprise.

"A yoga studio?" she asked, thoroughly confused. "Why are we at a yoga studio?"

"Because yoga's really good for you. I thought it'd be cool if we tried a class together." He looked expectantly at her, but she couldn't seem to wipe the disbelief off her face.

"Is this part of school? Or training?"

"Not exactly. I mean, it can't hurt. Stretching is really good for you."

"But Dad says that yoga is for sissies."

"Trust me. Your dad is a bigger fan of yoga than he's willing to say."

"Why?"

"Never mind. Come on."

A few minutes later, Natalie found herself in a room with a bunch of adults in tight clothing, bending and twisting themselves into the strangest of positions. The music was super weird- some kind of strange, twangy guitar and what sounded like whales mating. It definitely wasn't Guns 'N Roses, that was for sure. It also smelled funny in here. The bizarre scent of incense mixed with sweat was…interesting. Being the curious thing that she was, she decided to play along. Uncle Sam seemed to think this was going to be fun, so what the hell, why not.

She was the youngest person there, but she was determined to keep up. There were several young women in the class, and she couldn't help but notice that they were specifically craning their necks in these weird poses to try to get a better look at her uncle. She wanted to glare at these women to get them to back off, but she didn't want to embarrass him. She was determined to be on her best behavior.

As the class progressed, Natalie couldn't help but notice that the guy next to her kept passing gas every time they changed poses. She tried as hard as she could not to laugh, knowing that Sam wouldn't find it nearly as funny as she did. But on one particularly loud windbreak, her laugh broke out. Sam looked over at her with his version of The Eye. Remembering Dean's threat for her to behave herself, she quickly stifled her mirth. But it was so hard. Forbidden laughter was the best and hardest to keep in. She tried- but didn't exactly succeed.

Towards the end of the hour, they were all in 'downward dog' or something like that. The guy let out his biggest fart yet. Natalie bit her lip so hard to contain herself, but her face was turning purple from the strain. Sam caught her eye. "Stop it," he scolded in a whisper. She immediately swallowed the laughter, but was immeasurably grateful when the class ended.

*SPN SPN SPN*

They had had lunch at a Sweet Tomatoes, because of course a salad place was off limits when Dean Winchester was in charge. Natalie loved getting to make her own salad, and tried a ton of new toppings. That had been a blast. Up until Sam started gently scolding her for her laughter at the yoga studio. She managed to look trite enough to keep the lecture to only a few sentences before they finished off their meals and went back to the motel.

That afternoon, they sat down to do school work. Normally, she would have been doing hunting lore with Dean, but since they missed yesterday, she knew she had a math lesson coming. She hated math, but the sooner she got it done, the better. It was also a distraction from the tiny ping of sorrow she was feeling at Dean's absence. So it surprised the living hell out of her when Sam sat down and placed some new curriculum in front of her.

"What's this?" she asked curiously, turning the paper towards her.

"That is called Common Core Math," Sam said in a bright voice.

"What's that?"

"It's this new way of thinking that a lot of school systems are trying out."

"Why are they doing a new way? The old one broken or something?"

Sam suppressed his snort at the fact that Natalie sounded just like her father. "No, it's not broken, goofball. It's just something new. I want you to try using that on your math problems today instead of the old way. Maybe it'll be better."

"But…wait. So I gotta learn this new way to do something, instead of just doing it the way that I know works already?"

"Don't think of it like that, Bug. Think of this as expanding your knowledge."

"But I don't need more knowledge in math. I already hate it."

"Natalie."

She instantly pulled back her next retort, knowing that Sam's tone meant 'watch it'. She bit her lips closed and looked down at the paper until the feeling passed, then sneaked a peek up at Sam. He was watching her carefully, but seeing that she decided to behave, he smiled.

"Alright. Let's take a look at this."

About ten minutes later, Natalie wasn't caring that she was supposed to behave. She didn't care that she was going to get in trouble with Dean if she didn't do what Sam told her to. She was DONE with this new crap.

Sam tried to explain it as best as he could, but even he didn't really get it. Determined to keep up with the latest curriculum and make sure his niece was being exposed to everything she was supposed to, he pushed on. This only resulted in making Natalie more and more frustrated, both at the failure to grasp the basics of this stupid format and the fact that she was spending WAY longer on math than she knew she had to. She even thought about solving the problems the old way when Sam wasn't looking, but gritted her teeth when Sam told her that she had to show her work. She gripped her pencil so hard it nearly snapped in two. But after about thirty minutes of her working through this Common Core crap, her fiery Winchester blood won out over her restraint. She threw down her pencil in disgust.

"I am NOT doing this stupid bulls-" Sam whipped around so fast, glaring at her for the word he knew was about to come out of her mouth. Somehow, that evil eye got to her just enough to knock some sense into her. She amended the word mid-sentence.

"…bull STUFF anymore," she finished grumpily, crossing her arms. Sam took a deep, calming breath.

"Natalie," he began in his no-nonsense voice. "You know better than to throw things and use curse words."

"I didn't cuss," she said, her eyes shooting up to his defiantly.

"You almost did, which is just as bad." At that, her mouth dropped open. She couldn't believe it! She had actually, for once, censored herself, but she was still going to get in trouble for it?!

"It is not just as bad!" she retorted hotly.

"You really want to argue with me on this? You know your dad is calling in a couple hours, right?" Sam said, raising his voice. Having heard those magic words, Natalie slumped back down in her chair, fuming, but didn't say anything. Sam nodded. "That's better," he said. "Now you finish that math and then we'll go on to something else. And no more mouthing off or you're getting yours washed out with soap." Natalie just snatched her pencil up and continued working, glowering at her paper.

That night, when Dean called, it was a bit tense on both ends. Sam had promised to tell Dean about any issues that came up, and, even though in retrospect he felt that he had actually pushed Natalie too hard, he still told Dean about the altercation, owning up to his own part in it. But Dean immediately made Sam put Natalie on the phone. Sam watched as Natalie sat, stone-faced, and received a loud lecture over the phone on respecting her elders. She slowly deflated, only answering 'yes sir' or 'no sir' to her father's questions. At the end of the lecture, she handed the phone over to Sam stoically, not making eye contact.

He took it from her carefully, trying to get her to look at him, but once the phone was out of her grasp, she stomped off towards the bathroom. Sam was grateful and a little surprised that she didn't slam the door, but instead closed it quietly. Heaving a sigh of relief, he brought the phone up to his ear.

"Hey Dean, me again," Sam said.

"What the hell are you trying to do to her, Sam?" came the snarled response on the other end. Sam reared back in surprise.

"Wait- what?"

"Are you TRYING to goad her into exploding? Because buddy, you're on a sure-fire track for that."

"No, I'm not trying to goad her into-"

"Then why the hell are you pushing her on something that you know she's gonna lose her temper over? Why are you making her do this bullshit that you know, deep down, is pointless?" Dean shouted through the phone. It was one thing for Natalie not to behave; it was another for Sam to push his kid when they both knew she was already going to be having a difficult time with the whole separation. And despite the fact that she was acting out, he was going to still watch out for his kid.

Sam stammered for a moment, feeling defensive. "Look, all I'm trying to do is keep up with what kids her age are learning in school," he answered back furiously.

"Well, she's not IN school for a reason, genius."

"That doesn't mean that she shouldn't be exposed to things that other kids her age are learning, Dean!"

"And as her teacher, SAM, you should be recognizing a freakin' lost cause when you see one. I'm a thousand miles away and I can tell this math crap ain't workin'."

"Fine. No more new math, okay? Geez."

"Good. Now I told her that she puts one more toe outta line, she's in for a world of hurt when I get back, but for fuck's sake, YOU gotta remember what you tell ME every time I'm about to lose it with her."

"And what's that?"

"She's a kid."

"I know she's a kid-"

"Then start treating her like she's one. What happened to the Sam who knew she was gonna be upset the day I left, and planned to do what she needed? Huh? Why are you pushing her so hard when you know it's only gonna make trouble?"

That made Sam pause. Was he really doing that? He couldn't think about that now, maybe later on tonight, but not while he was on the phone with his big brother.

"Look, no more math. But I'm not giving up on the other stuff."

"Well, you just better pay attention. You push her over the edge, and she's not the only one getting her ass kicked when I get back, you hear me?"

*SPN SPN SPN*

The next morning, Sam was determined to make a fresh start. He decided to take Natalie to the history museum. Just more stuff that she could learn and observe. He was trying to be positive and upbeat, but couldn't help noticing that Natalie was definitely quieter than usual. And tense. Never a good combination. Maybe some fun at the museum would help.

Once they got there, Sam purchased tickets to go on the guided tour, thinking that Natalie would enjoy someone else teaching her for a change. She held her little shoulders stiffly and kept her mouth shut as the tour started. With Dean's warning ringing in his mind still, Sam just tried to keep an eye on her to see how this was all going over.

Natalie, on the other hand, was determined that no one know what was going on in her mind; a trait she had definitely inherited from her father. She was furious that she had gotten in trouble last night, especially after she had actually stopped herself from swearing- a herculean feat in her mind- but she was mostly upset about Dean being gone. She knew it was babyish to 'miss her daddy' but screw it- she missed him. It had been three whole days since she'd seen him, and Sam was trying to make her do all this new stuff when all she wanted to really do was look at lore books to try to forget that Dean wasn't there. But no, she was being drug all over creation, looking at this crap that was like a hundred million years old. So with every step she took, she got more and more pissed off.

The docent leading the small tour group rounded a corner, and Natalie finally saw something that attracted her attention. There was a large banner hanging over a wing that read "Ancient Medieval Weaponry". NOW we were talking. There could be all kinds of cool swords and stuff there, not to mention anti-witchcraft stuff. Right up her alley. Sam saw her perk up out of the corner of his eye. He looked down.

"That looks cool, huh Bug?" he said quietly but enthusiastically, wanting to get her excited. She just nodded back, her eyes still wide as she craned her neck to look inside. However, the docent had other ideas.

"You'll notice over here is a limited engagement display, Ancient Medieval Weaponry," she said in a practiced, disengaged voice. Natalie's head spun around, finally paying attention to what the woman was saying. But that short-lived hope was almost immediately crushed. "It's not part of the tour today," the docent said smoothly.

"Why?" Natalie asked in a loud voice, interrupting the lady's next words. Sam turned beet red as every adult in the group's head turned towards them. He put a hand on her shoulder.

"Natalie, shh," he scolded. "I'm sorry. Please continue," he said to the docent, trying to wave the attention away from them.

Natalie wasn't having it. "But that's the first cool thing that's been here this entire stupid tour," she said, not bothering to watch her volume or her manners. The docent shifted, irritated by both the insult and the interruption. She gave Sam the evil eye, which caused him to blush even more. He knelt down next to his niece and got a firm grip on her arm.

"Stop it," he chastised her quietly. "You know better than to be rude like that. We can go check out that exhibit later. IF you start behaving yourself."

"But…"

"No buts. You either behave or we're missing it." He stood up, towering over her as she stared at him. His insides twinged at the look of betrayal on her face. He shoved that to the side. No matter what, he was still the adult and she was still the child, and she was going to know her place. "Come on," he said authoritatively, then turned on his heel to catch up with the rest of the group who had already started heading for the next exhibit.

Natalie's blood reached the boiling point. Here she was getting in trouble AGAIN for something that she shouldn't have gotten in trouble for. She had been good all freaking morning, despite the health food breakfast with no bacon and this boring museum crap. And now Sam was threatening to take away the only maybe cool part of this entire stupid trip for some arbitrary reason? Screw. That.

Once he caught up to the group, Sam took a deep, calming breath. He was going to have a few words to say to Natalie after they got done with this tour. He knew Dean would be on his side for this one. She was being a disrespectful little brat. Once that thought passed through his mind, he suddenly shook himself. Hang on. Dean had had a point yesterday. She was a kid. And he was pushing her. Again. What did he expect was going to happen? Feeling guilty, he turned to apologize to Natalie. Only to discover that she wasn't there.

Sam stopped in his tracks. He looked wildly around for a second, just thinking he might not be seeing her immediately because she was so little. But it only took him half a moment to realize that she really wasn't there. Had she been kidnapped? Did someone grab her? Suddenly, his frantic eyes landed on the Medieval Weaponry banner. They narrowed in anger. He knew where that little brat was.

He stormed into the exhibit, eyes narrowed. He knew she was going to be using every trick that he and Dean had ever taught her about hiding and evading, but there was a reason that Sam Winchester was one of the two best hunters on the planet. Using his anger-sharpened senses, he began scanning the area for her.

Between the glass display cases, the large central exhibit, and the support columns in the dim room, there were a million places someone as small as Natalie could hide. But her curiosity would also be running wild right now, so he knew she wouldn't stay in one place for long. After about three minutes of still not finding her, his blood was really beginning to boil. He made another careful lap around the room, trying not to look too suspicious in front of the other patrons, when suddenly he caught a glimpse of her in a reflection on one of the glass surfaces. He immediately spun around, just long enough to catch her wide eyes as she registered that he had found her before she darted off again.

"Natalie!" Sam hissed, still pissed off but trying to keep his voice down. Of course she didn't answer him. He followed the direction she went as quickly as possible, but she had disappeared again. Damn Dean for teaching her so well.

After about ten minutes of this bizarre hide and seek, Sam was ready to kill her. By a stroke of sheer dumb luck, however, the moment he had reached that conclusion, a security guard came around the corner, dragging Natalie by the arm. "Natalie!" Sam said loudly, causing every head to once again turn in his direction. He rolled his eyes- he was getting REALLY sick of that happening today.

"This one yours?" the guard said gruffly. Natalie tried jerking her arm out of the guard's grip, but was unsuccessful.

"Yes," Sam said through gritted teeth, shooting daggers at his niece. She fidgeted and sullenly dropped her gaze to her shoes. Without another word, he snatched her other arm and began dragging her to the exit.

After they silently reached the parking lot, Sam all but threw her in the front seat. As he walked behind the back of the car towards the driver's side, he made himself stop and take a deep breath. He looked in the car windows. Natalie had already buckled herself in, and was sitting cross armed, staring out the windshield defiantly. Sam closed his eyes, forcing himself to breathe in for four, breathe out for four. Once he was in enough control of himself, he calmly walked to the driver's side and got in.

He didn't say anything as he started the car. He suddenly understood why Dean preferred the silent treatment when he was super pissed. There just wasn't anything to say that couldn't be said without yelling, and he was not ready to unleash that just yet. After fifteen minutes of silence, when they were close to the motel, Natalie finally broke the ice. "Can I have your phone, please?" she asked in a detached voice.

Sam just scoffed at her incredulously. "You really think I'm going to let you play on my phone after the stunt you just pulled?" he said angrily, not believing her gall.

"No," she said gruffly. "I want to call Dad and tell him what I did so I can get the first part of this over with." That hit Sam like a ton of bricks. She was asking to turn herself in, knowing that the second Dean found out, it was all over for her. He was so surprised by her request that it took him a minute to figure out why on earth she would want that. And then it came to him.

She had really always been like this. Once she knew she had been bad, if Sam or Dean hadn't immediately called her on it, she used to punish herself. He remembered her doing this very thing one time after she had been exceptionally bad while he was watching her, around when she was four. He had put her in a time out, but she later declared that it wasn't enough and sat back down in the corner herself.

"You want to call Dean?" Sam asked in a tight voice.

"Yes, sir," she answered. There was the tiniest quiver in her voice when she said it. Sam knew her voice only did that when she was really upset. And that made the last piece of the puzzle snap into place. Despite her outward stoicism, he knew in her heart of hearts that she was missing Dean terribly. And that she wanted him home- but not like this.

His rage fell away as he realized the pain she was in. Dean was right. Sam had forgotten that she was only eight. Eight years old and dealing with living out of a suitcase, a different bed every week, and an absent father. Sam knew a thing or two about all of that.

Sam pulled into the motel. "C'mon," he said in a much gentler voice than he had used all day. That tone caught her by surprise, she could tell. He climbed out, watching out of the corner of his eye as she cautiously made her way out of the car, keeping her eye on him like he was about to suddenly attack. She followed him though the door to their room.

Dropping the rental key on the table, Sam sighed heavily, then dropped down onto the long blue couch. He smiled at Natalie who was still treating him as if he was a rabid dog. "C'mere and sit down. I need to apologize to you," he said calmly. That completely threw her for a loop. Her face still etched in a distrusting look, she nonetheless trotted right over and sat down.

"Um…you're not gonna make me apologize to you?" she asked hesitantly.

Sam shook his head. "No. Well…not yet anyways." He took another deep breath. "Look Bug, I know that I've thrown a lot at you the past couple days. I didn't really ask you if you wanted to do it- I just kind of assumed you'd like it. But that was selfish of me, and I'm sorry." Natalie's mouth dropped open in shock, but Sam wasn't done yet. "I also know…that it's rough for you when your dad isn't here." That made her instantly snap her mouth shut as she resumed her stolid face. Sam knew it was just her defense mechanism and plowed on. "I didn't really take that into consideration either. So, I'm sorry for that, too."

The silence hung between them for a moment. Sam was just on the verge of breaking it, when Natalie suddenly launched herself into his arms. He smiled softly as she buried her face in his stomach, squeezing his middle tightly. He patted and rubbed her back gently as she struggled to keep herself together. He was smoothing her hair back when she finally lifted her face.

"I'm really sorry, Uncle Sam," she said in a quavering voice that broke his heart. "I was…I just got really mad, but that's no excuse, and I know that. I'm really sorry. I meant what I said- I'll call Dad and tell him myself so he'll only yell at me. And then, when he gets back…I'll take whatever punishment he's got and I won't fight him or you on it."

Her wide-eyed, earnest face just made Sam's heart hurt even more. He remembered acting up when he was a kid himself, but he didn't realize until he was older that it was his way of getting John's attention. That disappointment had eventually turned into resentment. And even though he knew that Dean would never, COULD never, be John, he didn't want Natalie feeling that disappointment and resentment. Not if he could save her from it.

"Thank you for apologizing," he said gently, smoothing the hair away from her face. "But we're not gonna tell Dean."

Natalie reared back, clearly suspicious. Sam couldn't help but smile as that famous Winchester trait broke through her resolve yet again. "We're not?" she asked, clearly waiting for the other shoe to drop.

"Nope. You think that you're the only one who would get your ass kicked if your dad knew I took you to a museum?" he said in a mock horrified tone, before grinning down at her. Natalie giggled sweetly, breaking the tension completely. Sam continued stroking her hair, but she crawled over into his lap, cuddling into his chest, letting him hold her like she used to. And truth be told, she didn't mind one bit.